It's Your BodyNovember 2013

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Breathe Into Your MassageMindful Breathing Enhances Bodywork BenefitsCathy Ulrich

Mindful breathing brings an individual back into their body, facilitating presence and relaxation.

He who hashealth, hashope; and hewho has hope,has everything.ThomasCarlyleOffice Hours and Contact

Reiki-Massage BodyworksReiki-Massage@massagetherapy.com802-233-4733Hours By Appointment

In this Issue

Breathe Into Your MassageHappiness is ContagiousEasing Holiday Angst

During her massage, Elaine was havingtrouble relaxing, continually talkingabout all of the stressors in her life. Itook a deep breath and asked her to dothe same. Suddenly, her body relaxedand I finally felt her respond to the workI was doing. So, what shifted with thatsimple suggestion?

In The MomentElaine was thinking about the stresses inher life instead of where she was at themoment. She was in a safe space,receiving gentle, supportive bodywork.And yet she couldn't relax. By simplyasking her to be mindful of her breath,she immediately felt her body andbecame present with me in that space.

Many meditation traditions use thebreath to quiet the mind. With mindfulbreathing, we're suddenly thrust into anawareness of our inner spaces and afeeling that we actually do live in a body.

Reduce PainOne of the first things expectantmothers learn in natural childbirthclasses is breathing techniques to help

control labor pain. By consciouslybreathing during contractions, theylearn to shift the feeling of pain to justsensation.

Elaine came to see me because she hadchronic pain in her foot, knee, and hip.Often chronic pain sets up as a viciouscycle of muscle tightness, impairedblood flow, and more pain, even inareas distant from the original problem.When I asked Elaine to send her breathto the foot, she changed her feeling ofpain to simply sensation and this openeda door that allowed me to change theholding pattern in her tissue.

Of course she couldn't physicallybreathe into her foot, but the imagery of

sending warm, healing breath into herfoot from the inside while I worked on itfrom the outside changed herrelationship to the pain.

Try this simple technique yourself. Asyou tune into your breath, notice yourbody. Is there discomfort or pain?

Being actively aware of your breath during a massage enhances the benefits of your session.

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Breathe in, and think of filling yourlungs with healing oxygen. Now breatheout, and imagine sending this warm,healing oxygen directly to the place thathurts. Continue gently breathing intothe area for a few minutes. What does itfeel like now?

Relieve StressWhen I worked with Elaine, I noticedthat the more she talked about herstressful life, the shallower her breathbecame. She was breathing high in herchest in short, rapid breaths. Her mindhad transported her back to her stressfullife, even though she was in a placewhere she was supported andencouraged to take a break from thatstress, putting her body into afight-or-flight response.

One clear manifestation of this is rapid,shallow breathing. While stress canproduce this breathing pattern, thegood news is that we can consciouslychange the breathing pattern and reducethe stress. It works both ways.

As I asked Elaine to slow her breathingand take deeper breaths, the tension inher face softened. Her body relaxed onthe table as if she were sinking into thepadding. Her feet became warmer, asure sign that her circulation hadchanged and that her nervous system hadswitched from fight or flight to thecalming mode of rest and digest.

Try this for yourself. The next timeyou're feeling stressed, stop for amoment and notice how you'rebreathing. Is your breath high in yourchest? Is it fast and shallow? Now, gentlyinvite your breath to slow down. Start topull breath into your lungs by lettingyour belly relax and expand as youinhale. Spend a few moments withyourself and your breath and look at thestressful situation again. Does it seem sobad now?

Your MassageReceiving a massage does involveparticipation on the client's part. Whilethe practitioner is the expert on thebodywork, the clients are the experts ontheir bodies. In our culture, theclient/therapist relationship is often acheck-your-body-at-the-door affair.But so much more can happen when theclient works with the therapist.

The next time you go for a massage, trythese suggestions to achieve mindfulbreathing and enhance the benefits ofyour session:

- As you settle onto the table, feel theweight of your body on the table andbegin to notice your breath.

- Feel your breath moving of its ownaccord. Where is it most noticeable?Bring into the spaces that feel less full(without effort--just invite).

- When your therapist starts working,notice the pressure and rhythm. Whenyour practitioner lets up on thepressure, breathe in. When she/heapplies pressure, breathe out.

- If your practitioner comes to atender area, pay special attention toyour breath. Work with the tendernesson the exhale, imagining that you're

breathing out the pain.

- As your therapist works on differentareas, imagine your breath moving thereto meet her. Send your breath wherevershe is working. Let her work on theoutside, you work on the inside.

- Notice the changes as the massageprogresses. Notice your thoughtpatterns. Notice your comfort level.Notice your stress (and how it melts) asyou send breath to the various areas ofyour body.

- When your session is complete andyou sit up, notice how your breath feels.What do you notice about your body, theroom, the light?

Why not use the lifegiving force ofbreath to make your next massage aneven more beneficial experience. Justbreathe.

Surrounding yourself with happy people is healthy!

Happiness is Contagious

Easing Holiday AngstFive Stress Busters for a Joyous Season

Maybe mom was right. Research suggeststhat surrounding yourself with friendsand family who are happy can actuallyincrease your own happiness.

Scientists at Harvard University and theUniversity of California, San Diego,found that emotions, particularlyhappiness, have a viral effect in how theyspread from one person to another. Forevery happy person in your physicalsocial network, you have a 9 percentchance of increasing your ownhappiness. The effect is morepronounced the closer someone is toyou geographically, and it does not seemto include electronic communications.The study, "Dynamic Spread ofHappiness in a Large Social Network,"can be found online in the BritishMedical Journal (www.bmj.com).

This is especially good news consideringthe potential health benefits ofhappiness and positivity. A studypublished in Stroke magazine hasindicated a "significant association"

between optimism and a reduced risk ofstroke. This is in addition to studies thathave linked optimism to a healthierimmune system, faster wound healing,and a lower risk of heart disease. Whilethe exact cause of the benefits is notclear, one theory is that optimisticpeople are more likely to take care oftheir health. In addition, there is hopethat teaching optimism could becomepart of a preventative program forvarious conditions.

What's one way to get happy? Trymassage! Exposure to stress, acontributing factor to unhappiness, overa long period of time can increase therate of neural degeneration and increasethe risk for Alzheimer's disease. Luckily,a study from Umea University in Swedenhas shown that just five minutes ofmassage has the potential to lower stress,and 80 minutes of massage has atremendously positive effect on stresslevels. Get massage, get happy, and cheerup your friends and family!

You enter the holiday season with thebest of intentions -- looking forward totime spent with family and friends,decorating, shopping, baking. But assoon as you pile holiday activities on topof an already busy life, you're likely tofind yourself relating more to EbineezerScrooge than Martha Stewart.

Consider these five suggestions to keepholiday stress at bay:

1. Determine a Shopping BudgetFor many, gift giving is an importantpart of the holidays, serving as a way toexpress love and appreciation for friendsand family. But when the credit cardbills arrive in January, you may discoveryou've extended your holiday stress wellinto the New Year. Plan your budget inadvance, determine what you can spend,and stick to the plan.

2. Create a Time BudgetMany will make a shopping budget, butwhat about making a time budget?Before accepting every invitation thisyear, decide ahead how many parties youcan and want to attend whilemaintaining your sanity. Make choicesabout your time commitments based onwhat you'd really like to do this year,rather than what you think you shoulddo or what you've always done. Don'tforget to leave time for yourself.

3. Set Food-Intake BoundariesYou'll likely be tempted to eat in excess,and don't be too hard on yourself if youdon't stick to your pre-holiday eatingstandards. But do decide ahead of timejust how much you'll deviate from youreating routine.

4. Stick to Your Exercise Regimen

Regular exercise is a powerful stressbuster. You'll feel better, sleep better,avoid weight gain, boost your immunesystem, and maintain a positive outlookabout yourself. While it may seem likean easy time concession to make, don'tgive in to the idea. Stick to exercise, andyou'll thank yourself for it.

5. Take Time to RestTake time from your schedule to honorthe cycles of the season. The holidays fallduring winter solstice -- the shortest dayof the year. Learn from nature, and getplenty of rest.

Sometimes themost importantthing in a wholeday is the rest wetake betweentwo deepbreaths.

Etty Hillesum

Daylight savings time again is upon us to dial in the "fallback" recipe that we will carry with us until we "springforward." For a brief time our mornings will be lighter andnights will support the darkness for a longer time. In thenortheast, it seems we lack a sufficient amount of daylightfrom this time forward until Spring. Being mindful that fullspectrum lighting (missing more from our environment) canhelp to recharge the body during these months. I am energysaving conscious, but also understand that our body is aliving thing needing the benefits of this light. Some peopleare especially sensitive to the body's need for genuine light,and experience the Seasonal Affective Disorder termed asSAD. Much research has been established on this area ofstudy. SAD symptoms do benefit from light therapy.

Perhaps it may be worthwhile to switch out a few of thoseenergy saving fluorescent or LED bulbs for full spectrumbulbs during the darker months to give back to our bodieswhat it needs. Just as plant life needs light to grow, we needlight as well. Taking simple steps to work with our changing environment,natural or socially induced, there are small measures thatcan help one to see the "light at the end of the long nightsahead."

Reiki-Massage Bodyworks

97 Blakely Rd, Ste. 114Colchester, VT 05446